S1 Episode 05: Everlasting Beauty
by firebreathingfishies
Summary: As promised the Doctor takes Ashley to the Biggest Theme Park in the Universe. Lost in the abandoned Hall of Mirrors and with a mysterious child seemingly trying to contact the Doctor they sharp realise that they won't be enjoying themselves... COMPLETE!
1. On Top of the World

**A/N: This one was originally going to be about cowboys but... well, I'll have to do a bit research into the Old West and frankly, I couldn't be bothered :P But I'll do that one for Episode Six. I was also going to start this one off with a recap but... Okay, okay I'm a lazy sod. I'm sorry. But still, after the creepy detour in the museum I'm back into the series. This one picks up straight from the end of 'Virtual Insanity', and just forget everything you read in Education Isn't Always Healthy. For now, anyway xD**

* * *

**Chapter One**

**On Top of the World**

She had expected the air to be cooler at least, but she couldn't notice any difference, even when she tried. The air was still and normal, like the doors of the Tardis weren't even open at all. But then she supposed there was no air to _be_ normal. Space was just a big vacuum. It didn't have a temperature.

No, wasn't it meant to be freezing cold? Ashley couldn't remember.

She leaned forward slightly and peered down, past her dangling feet and into the black abyss of space below. Technically, this was impossible. Her feet shouldn't be able to dangle in space because there was no gravity, but here she was. She might as well have been sitting on a wall. She wondered if one of her boots came off whether it would plummet or just float away.

Behind her, the Doctor was cursing and muttering around the controls. Something had blown in mid-flight and he had to stop to fix it. Ashley didn't bother getting involved. She didn't have a clue how that thing worked, although she had now learned that it wasn't just a machine. Apparently it was living, the Doctor was very clear on that. But when she had asked it how its day had been, he had just laughed at her, leaving her embarrassed.

'How long do you think it'll be before you fix it?' she asked, picking a piece of popcorn out of the bag beside her – she had insisted they did a shop to get some food before they went anywhere else – and tossing it in her mouth. 'I mean, this is fantastic and all, but there's only so long you can stare into the depths of space before getting a little bored.'

The Doctor's head poked up from the other side of the control panel. 'You're amazing, you know that?' he told her with a sigh. 'There are billions of people who would give anything to be sitting where you are right now, eating popcorn and staring into space, and _you're_ bored.'

Ashley shrugged her shoulders and pulled her feet up, tucking them underneath her. 'Don't get me wrong this is bloody fantastic. I don't think I could do something back home without dying of boredom or falling asleep. It's the most amazing thing I've ever seen in my whole life, and I'll probably never see anything like it again it's just…' She paused to toss another piece of popcorn in her mouth. 'There's just nothing much happening.'

The Doctor clicked his tongue noisily. 'You've got the attention span of a squirrel.'

Ashley frowned. 'That's not fair.' She flicked a piece of popcorn out of the Tardis doors. It soared for a moment, and then when it was about a meter away it slowed and floated away majestically. Ashley beamed happily and watched it. 'Oh that's hella cool.'

The Doctor half smiled as he went back to work. 'My point exactly.'

'How come I'm not blowing up or… like, we're not getting sucked out into the vacuum of space or something?'

'You wouldn't understand. It's complicated stuff.'

Ashley turned, leaning against the doorframe despite how easily she could tumble out in such a position. 'I wouldn't understand? For all you know I could be a rocket scientist or something.'

The Doctor laughed. 'You? A rocket scientist?' He laughed again, louder.

Annoyed, Ashley got to her feet and pushed the Tardis door shut. 'Okay, maybe not a rocket scientist, but surely you could explain it simply. In baby speak so my gormless little human brain can actually understand your superior intelligence.'

The Doctor grinned at her, sensing her annoyance. 'Trust me, even if I whittled it down to the simplest terms possible, you still wouldn't understand. Although thank you for recognising my brilliance.'

Ashley leaned against the console and crossed her arms over her chest. 'I don't like the fact that you think I'm stupid.' She frowned. 'I've saved your backside a couple of times already, and we've only been to like, what… four places? And one of those was my house. Didn't really count. Three faraway places and each time I saved your arse.'

The Doctor frowned. 'Each time? I don't think so.'

Ashley snorted and held up one finger. 'That BLFC place, you nearly had your face chewed off by little nanobots; who saved you? Moi.'

The Doctor half shrugged. 'I guess so… But I had it under control.'

'14,000 BC. I got that big rampaging spider thing and all it's little freaky babies before they ate everyone. Probably including you.'

'That's not fair. If I'd been there I would have stopped them.'

'But you went back to the ship!'

'Well…' He paused, frowning. 'It was important.'

Ashley rolled her eyes. 'Oh yeah, and don't forget me coming in to pull you out of your cushty little virtual reality world.'

The Doctor fell silent. 'I thanked you for that.' He said quietly.

Ashley winced, wishing she hadn't brought it up. It was a sore subject, but she hadn't been thinking. He hadn't said much about it. Actually, he hadn't said _anything _about it. She had wanted to ask but she hadn't been sure how. She mulled it over for a moment, and decided to just bite the bullet.

'What happened to it?' she asked. 'Your planet, I mean.'

The Doctor's good mood had now completely dissipated. He fiddled with the wiring, not looking up at her. 'I don't want to talk about it.'

'You can tell me you know,' Ashley said gently. 'If you want to talk about it. I know it must be hard for you and stuff but-'

He turned to her sharply, eyes wide. 'I don't want to talk about it.' He repeated.

Ashley's eyebrows shot up and she fell silent, surprised by his harshness. 'Okay,' she muttered, raising her hands. 'Sorry. Forget it.' Wounded, she turned and moved away from the control panel.

The Doctor continued to fiddle with the wiring, his eyebrows knitted together. Eventually he sighed and looked up. 'I'm sorry, Ashley. I just-'

But she didn't want to hear it. 'Where are we going anyway?' she asked, feigning interest in one of the coral beams. 'When you get that fixed, I mean?'

He watched her for a moment, saddened that she hadn't even allowed him to apologise, let alone accept it. He felt bad for snapping at her. 'Well,' he replied, trying to return to his happier tone. 'You remember me telling you about the biggest theme park in the universe? No of course not, you were unconscious. Anyway, that's where we're going.'

She returned to his side with a big, excited grin on her face. 'A theme park! _Biggest_ theme park? Does it have roller coasters?'

'Of course it has roller coasters. What kind of theme park would it be without them? Certainly not the biggest, let me tell you.'

Ashley jumped up and down and clapped her hands. 'I love theme parks!' she squealed, summoning a bemused look from the Doctor. 'I'm sorry I can't help it. I get excited.'

The Doctor laughed. 'That's a good thing.' He told her. 'I just have to reroute this one thing and…' The Tardis began to hum again and the Doctor grinned. 'Bingo!'

'Does that mean we're going? Now! Right now?'

'Right now.' He grinned back. He reached for the lever, and then hesitated. 'Just one thing though… How do you feel about clowns?'

Ashley shuddered visibly. 'I hate clowns.'

The Doctor winced, and then shrugged apologetically. Ashley looked horrified but before she had a chance to question him, the Tardis began to shake around, knocking her off balance.


	2. Inner Child

**Chapter Two **

**Inner Child**

'Right, now you can just hold your horses there a minute, missy!' The Doctor called as Ashley skipped towards the doors. 'Few ground rules first.'

Ashley's shoulders dropped and she turned slowly. 'Okay _dad_,' she sighed sarcastically. 'What are they?'

The Doctor grimaced as he reached her. 'Please don't call me dad.' He reached in his pocket and produced a mobile phone. A flip-phone. A very fancy flip-phone. 'Take this.'

'Is this for me?' Ashley gasped. 'Oh cool!' She immediately started punching buttons and messing around with it.

'I hope your not going to be wandering around staring at that thing all day,' the Doctor frowned. 'Put it somewhere safe. Knowing you you'll be needing it pretty soon.'

Ashley rolled her eyes and pushed it in her pocket. 'Okay, okay. So, I guess you're going to organise a meeting place or something in case we get split up.'

The Doctor beamed at her and dangled something in front of her face. She blinked in bewilderment at the silver key, and then cocked an eyebrow. 'A Tardis key,' he told her. 'It's about time you had one. I should have really given you one earlier but… well… I didn't really want you in here on your own because, y'know, you're unpredictable.'

Ashley grinned and took the key. 'Is this the equivalent of giving me the key to your flat?' she smirked.

'If you mean equivalent as in I'll probably be asking you for it back sooner or later than yes. It's exactly the same.' He snatched his coat up from its perch on the control panel and pulled it on. 'Have you got everything?'

Ashley blinked. 'Um… I have the phone and the key.' She shrugged.

'Then that's a yes.' The Doctor strode past her towards the doors. 'Come on then! We'll want to get in before the queues are too long. Hop to it!'

He disappeared outside and Ashley skipped after him, unable to contain the wide grin that spread on her face. However, when she got outside, her smile dropped.

'Holy crap…' she muttered.

'Ah,' the Doctor frowned. He glanced at his watch and tapped on it. 'I think it must have stopped. I guess we didn't beat the queues after all.'

There were thousands upon thousands of beings in groups and rows, stretching on for what seemed like an eternity. Beyond them there was the peak of a roller coaster, but it was miles away. Ashley rubbed her forehead in dismay.

'I'm not standing in that.' She said.

'Me neither.' The Doctor replied. He looked around for inspiration. 'Oh, hello.'

A moment later and he was dashing off. Ashley nearly lost him in the crowd, but she quickly caught up. As soon as she did, however, she felt a rough hand on her shoulder and she was shocked to be staring into the face of a bull-like creature. It snorted, spraying her face with something unpleasant from its nostrils, an then said; 'No jumping line.'

The Doctor was beside her and smiling at the bull-thing. 'We're not, really.' He flashed the psychic paper. 'We're maintenance.'

The bull-thing snorted again, and then turned back to a group of smaller, mini-bull things. Ashley wiped her face and grimaced at the Doctor. He smiled happily at her, and led her through the crowd by the hand.

* * *

It had taken longer to fight through the crowds than to actually get past security. Both the Doctor and Ashley had nearly been torn to shreds by various life forms a few times, but the psychic paper rescued them from any severe beatings. The female on the stalls looked young and had stunning bright pink skin, with flowing blonde hair. She grinned broadly at the Doctor, and seemed to brighten. The Doctor looked a little flustered at her reaction to him and literally pushed Ashley inside the park.

'Here we are!' he grinned, stuffing his hands in his pockets and looking around. 'The biggest theme park in the universe!'

Ashley nodded, grinning. 'So what's the theme?'

He blinked and glanced to her. 'Huh?'

'The theme? Theme parks have a theme. That's why they're called theme parks.'

The Doctor looked bemused. 'Well… I uh… It's the biggest? Everything is big?'

Ashley looked around and frowned. 'No it's not.'

'How would I know?' he cried in exasperation. 'You're in an alien theme park! Look past the little things for once!'

Ashley linked his arm and grinned. 'You've got no patience with me, have you?'

The Doctor sighed and shook his head, looking across the square. 'Oooh! Hot dogs.' He dragged her off to one side.

* * *

'So where abouts are we?' Ashley asked through a mouthful of hotdog. She watched a pair of strange, jelly-like creatures wobble by. 'There don't seem to be many humans here.'

'There are none here actually,' the Doctor replied. 'We're not in the future or anything. We're just very, very far away.'

Ashley glanced to him in surprise. 'So… at this very moment…' She glanced at her watch. 'Hollyoaks is on?'

'Well… yeah.'

Ashley laughed. 'That makes me the only human in this theme park, doesn't it? That's bloody amazing!'

The Doctor frowned. 'Keep your voice down. Even though your planet doesn't know about other life, everyone is well aware of you lot. You're not exactly… well… popular.'

'Why's that?'

'Well, the amount of stuff you randomly fire into space for one thing.'

Ashley mulled this over for a moment. Her gaze fell upon a passing woman. 'She looks human.'

'_I_ look human. Doesn't mean I am.'

She nodded in agreement. 'Touché. So what should I say I am? In case anyone asks. What are you, anyway?'

The Doctor shook his head. 'You can't say you're a Time Lord. Say you're a… a Norm.'

'A norm? That sounds pretty boring. Kind of like Norman. Norman Bates. Norman Bates has got no mates.' She beamed and nudged him. 'See what I did there?'

'I did and I wish I hadn't.' The Doctor tossed his rubbish into a nearby bin. 'Anyway, as I was saying, yes the year is 2008. We're currently in the Rubair Nebula, practically on the other side of the Galaxy to Earth. You lot won't make it here for another two thousand years, and by then it'll have gone out of business and it'll be a giant chicken farm.'

Ashley grimaced. 'Space chickens?'

The Doctor rolled his eyes. 'Yes, space chickens.'

'Cool. Do they wear little astronaut helmets and stuff?'

He frowned and turned to her with a look of disbelief on his face, but she was grinning at him. Realising she was pulling his leg, he smiled lazily in return. 'Sometimes I can't tell if you're being serious or not.'

Ashley slid off the wall they were sitting on and brushed the crumbs from her lap. 'Oh you'll know when I want you to.' She grabbed his arm and pulled him down. 'Now come on. I want to go on some rides.'

The Doctor resisted her pulling. 'Ah, well… I'm not big on rides.'

She turned and looked at him in confusion. 'What? Why?'

The Doctor grimaced and glance around. He adjusted his tie awkwardly. 'Well… they're just so… They move around too much.'

Ashley blinked, and then laughed. 'Oh my God are you scared?'

'What? No! Of course I'm not scared. I've faced some of the most terrifying beings ever created! I wouldn't be scared of a stupid roller coaster.'

'Oh I can't believe you're scared.'

'Am not!'

'You so are.' She patted him on the chest. 'Catch up when you've got out of those nappies.' With that, she pranced off into the crowds.

The Doctor frowned after her. 'I'm not scared!' he insisted. He flattened the front of his suit and glanced around. 'I'm not scared.'

Reassured, he headed off in the direction of the gift shops.


	3. Persistent Strangers

**Chapter Three **

**Persistent Strangers**

Ashley couldn't stop grinning. Her cheeks were actually aching, quite badly in fact, but she couldn't stop. The things going on around her were so amazing. So incredibly fantastic, it was beyond words. The Doctor had shown her some pretty impressive things, but this topped everything.

A being with a head the side of a tennis ball, a long thin neck and a body big enough to rival Pavarotti sauntered by, drawing an even wider grin from Ashley. Even the aliens were fantastic! She had never seen anything like it in her whole life. Of course most of them looked like rubber masks and she had been tempted to reach out and try and pull them off, but sense soon told her not to be so foolish. She didn't want to have to cut her visit short because she couldn't keep her hands to herself.

Ashley had bought a weird milkshake thing with the change the Doctor had so kindly given her from the hotdogs. The flavours had been insane. Half of them she had never heard of and, after five minutes of musing and aggravating the impatient jelly-person behind the counter, she settled on Liklus flavour. When she tasted it, it tasted a little like marzipan.

So now she wandered through the crowds, sipping on her alien milkshake and seeing the sights of a place human beings would never imagine existed, and wondered if Manny had remembered to record Hollyoaks for her.

'You there!' A bellowing voice invaded her thoughts and a strong hand grabbed her arm. 'Pick a card!'

Ashley looked up in bewilderment at the clown hovering over her, its face contorted into an impossible grin. Its eyes were wide and had this air of insanity around them that made Ashley want to run away as fast as she could. She couldn't help but think of Pennywise. A moment later and the clown was holding a deck of cards out at her, fanned out.

'Pick a card!' he ordered again, still with that creepy grin.

'Um… okay.' Ashley reached out and took a card.

'Don't show it to me!' the clown cried dramatically. 'Memorise it, and then put it back into the deck.'

Ashley looked at the card. It wasn't your regular hearts or diamonds or anything. In fact, she had no idea what it was. Just a weird, squiggly shape. She slipped it back into the deck. The clown proceeded to shuffle the deck, and then quite unexpectedly, bent the deck and allowed all the cards to fly into her face. Ashley let out an alarmed cry, and the small crowd of spectators laughed.

'Voila!' the clown cried, reaching forward and pulling a card from her hair. 'Was this your card?'

Ashley blinked at it. To be honest, she had no idea. 'Yeah.' She nodded.

The crowd laughed and cheered the clown, who proceeded to frolic around, do a quick headstand, and run off into the depths of the park. Ashley stared after him, feeling a little violated. She didn't like clowns. And to top off her fear, she didn't think that that guy had been wearing face paints.

Shaking off her uneasiness, she got moving again. It wasn't long before she was grinning once again. She wondered what the Doctor was doing as she probably would have enjoyed this a little more if he were walking alongside her, rabbiting on about whatever the hell was on his mind at the time. His rambling had become a constant background sound that she kind of missed when it wasn't going. Half the time she had no idea what he was on about, but it was good to have nonetheless. The Doctor obviously felt the same way because even though he was constantly commenting on her lack of interest and her being so easily distracted, he was still insisting on taking her to even more exciting and elaborate places. He showed no sign of taking her back home any time soon. She had no complaints. She didn't want to go home until she saw every corner of the universe. Twice.

She pulled herself out of her thoughts and realised that there was suddenly a lot less people around (people, aliens – whatever). She stopped and frowned, looking around at the few abandoned ticket stalls and shops on either side of her. She must have wandered out of the main park, which was understandable given the distractions. She went to turn back when something caught her eye. Something was glinting in the sunlight a little off to the right. She hesitated, sipping thoughtfully on her drink, and proceeded to head over.

On closer inspection, the glinting object was actually a building. It was only one storey high from what she could see and the walls were mirrors. For a split second she couldn't even see it because it reflected its surroundings giving the illusion of invisibility, but the huge sign above the bright red doors gave it away.

'Hall of mirrors,' Ashley mused, looking up at it. 'I bloody hate these things.'

'Well you shouldn't.' a voice told her, making her jump. 'This is the biggest hall of mirrors in the universe. People come from far and wide to see this place. There's even a restaurant in the middle that serves the most delicious food ever created! You will be kicking yourself later if you don't check it out now.'

Ashley glanced around, bewildered. She couldn't see anyone. 'Um… But surely if it's the biggest hall of mirrors ever, it must be really easy to get lost.'

'Of course not! I see over everything. If someone is in trouble, I just drop the walls and out you go!'

'Well… where are you?'

There was a tapping to her left and she looked around. A ticket booth, which she hadn't noticed before, sat on its own. Behind the slightly grimy glass sat a bronze coloured robot. It reminded her a little of C-3PO.

'You're a robot.' She commented.

'Of course. Now because you appear to be so sceptical, I'll let you go in for free. A twenty-minute free exploration of the biggest hall of mirrors in the universe. How does that sound?'

Ashley looked at the building uneasily. 'Why is it with all these closed down places?' she asked.

'It's the only place we could fit it due to its size!'

She still felt uneasy. 'There's no queue. If it's so magnificent then why is no one here?'

'Because they're all inside! There's never any queues because it's so big! Everyone can fit in there. At this moment in time there are over a thousand people in the hall of mirrors, most of which are dining in the centre. You find the centre and you can get a free meal of anything you like.'

Ashley stared up at the building, sipping on her drink. She mulled it over. This would be her one and only chance to see the biggest hall of mirrors in the universe, so it would be a shame to pass it up. Although it was weird how it was out of the way like this, and so quiet. Finally though, the idea of a free meal prevailed (since travelling with the Doctor she had found herself constantly hungry for reasons unknown to both of them) and she approached the doors.

'Good choice!' the robot applauded. 'See you on the other side, miss!'

Ashley glanced back once to the robot and pushed the door open. She disappeared inside. Immediately, the robot shut down. A figure in a dark hood emerged from the ticket booth and ran to the doors. He pulled the shutters down and then slunk away. The sign on the shutters read 'UNSAFE'.


	4. Clown

**A/N: Okay, bits of this chapter might be a bit confusing to anyone who hasn't read the other stories, or can't really remember them lol! Although if you're really completely bewildered by it, just PM me or something and I'll give you the lowdown without you having to go back and read through all that :P**

* * *

**Chapter Four **

**Clown**

The Doctor stood at the edge of the crowds; his hands pushed in his pockets, and grinned broadly. Of course he had been here quite a few times already, and he had seen this particular contortionist show numerous times, but it still amazed him. The Vigoralites were an especially flexible species. That probably had something to do with them having no spines and being about 98 per cent muscle mass. They were creating some astonishing shapes up there.

'We're going to need a volunteer for our next one!' one of the malleable beings called down to the crowd. A few people waved their arms around. 'You sir!'

The Doctor raised his eyebrows. 'Oh no. No thank you.'

'Come on, sir,' the being beamed at him. 'Don't worry if you think you'll be too rigid! We like a challenge!'

The Doctor backed away, shaking his head and smiling politely. 'Not for me thanks. I uh… I have an appointment with my chiropractor in the morning!' He made a quick exit before he was dragged up on stage. He left the cheering crowds behind in search of something a little calmer.

He needed a break after the few days he had had.

The Doctor peered in a shop window as he passed, grinning at the slogan t-shirts on display. He mulled over getting one that read _'I Rode The Biggest Roller Coaster In The Universe And All I Got Was This Lousy T-Shirt_' for Ashley, but he had no way of knowing whether she had already bought one for herself. He wouldn't put it past her. She seemed like the type to savour novelties like that.

Plus, it was at least ten credits over what he was willing to spend.

The last time he had visited Rubair Nebula it had been with Rose, and their stay hadn't been exactly _lengthy_. They had been set down on the planet for only two hours when she thought it would be funny to honk the nose of a passing clown. Little did she know that the clowns weren't wearing masks, and this particular clown had been oversensitive of his apparently oversized nose. They had fled back to the Tardis with about thirty clowns cartwheeling, dancing and unicycling after them.

He smiled at the memory. Then his smile dropped at more memories.

The Doctor realised that he would have to tell Ashley about it all sooner or later, but the wounds were still a little raw and he didn't know how she would react. If he told her what had happened, perhaps she would want to go back home. He couldn't let her do that. Not when he knew what she was.

That was another thing he would have to tell her. After finding that file on the bounty ship all the way back in 14,000 BC he had kept it hidden in a compartment on the control panel in the Tardis, hoping that he would never have to tell her. But she knew there was something important he wasn't telling her. Maybe she even knew he was only keeping her on board the Tardis because he wanted to keep an eye on her. Okay, so that wasn't the _only_ reason. He needed the company, but still… She wasn't as slow as she came across sometimes. She knew there was something he wasn't telling her. She was going to find out sooner or later whether he told her or not. And if she found out _without_ him telling her, all the worse for him.

He shook the thoughts away and allowed himself to smile again. He didn't need to be thinking about this right now. What was it with him and brooding recently? Why couldn't he just relax? Well, every time he _did_ relax, something went horribly wrong so _that_ was a good reason if any not to relax. Travelling through time and space meant you had to keep your guard up at all costs. Never know what's lurking around the corner.

The Doctor saw her peering out from behind a souvenir cart, her dark hair matted and her pink dress torn and dirty. He stopped and looked at her. She stood out amongst the bustling alien theme park-goers, but not a single one of them looked at her. Not a single one noticed.

She had a human form, like himself and probably no older than five years old. Her wide brown eyes were glazed over and circled with dried, crusted face paint. The clown pattern that had been at one point or another fresh on her face was smeared in places and worn off completely in others. She looked right at him. Even when people passed in front of her, she only saw him.

The Doctor looked back at her with a faint frown, trying to determine what she could be. Was she lost? No. Her clothes were outdated by at least a decade. No one else could see her apparently. So what was left? Ghost?

She disappeared behind the cart and he broke into a run to catch up. Someone – or some_thing _– that he knocked into as he passed yelled a vulgar comment after him but he ignored it, dodging through the crowds. The little girl stayed three meters ahead of him at all times, never getting further away and never getting closer. He opened his mouth to tell her to stop, but he knew that wouldn't do any good.

Just as he thought he had caught up to her, he pushed through the last group of thrill-seekers and came to a stop. The little girl had vanished. He ran his fingers through his hair and looked around, eyebrows knitted together. Then he noticed something glinting just ahead. Narrowing his eyes, he moved forward to investigate.

He grinned as the sign for the 'Biggest Hall of Mirrors in the Universe' became clear and he observed the building happily. He had wanted to come here with Rose the first time, but apparently she had a thing about halls of mirrors. She wouldn't go in. Now, apparently, it was too late. The whole place was closed down. Looking around, he realised this whole section of the park was closed down. Troubled, he wandered back to the park and stopped the first person who walked by.

'S'cuse me,' he said, still glancing back into the deserted part of the theme park. 'But you couldn't tell me why this part is closed, could you?'

The man he had stopped looked human; apart from the fact his eyelids were vertical instead of horizontal. 'Oh that part,' he said with a slight grimace. 'Been shut down for years that has.'

'Why?'

The man sighed and glanced around, probably looking for an excuse not to stand here and have to explain it. The Doctor stepped in front of him and asked again.

'Why?'

'Well…' the man glanced uneasily to the deserted area. 'The uh… They shut it down as a kind of memorial. You see, they built that great big hall of mirrors place but it was, um, _too_ big. A bunch of people got lost and… never made it out again. They shut the place down after about three days. They shut the rest of the area down as a memorial.'

The Doctor frowned. 'How many people went missing?'

'I don't know. But they never found them. Some think that they just snuck off out the back or something and disappeared. I think they're still in there somewhere, trying to get out.' He shivered visibly.

'How long ago was this?'

The man looked at him curiously. 'You sure do ask a lot of questions. Why do you want to know?'

The Doctor beamed. 'I'm inquisitive.'

'It was about fifteen years ago.'

'Ah.' _That explains the out of date dress._

'Are you done then?'

'Yup.' The Doctor patted the man on his shoulder. 'Thanks a lot.'

With that, he sauntered back towards the hall of mirrors. While Ashley was off having fun with her roller coasters and other nauseating rides, he would have to make his own fun.


	5. Pale Reflections

**A/N: Arg I freaked myself out with this chapter o.O I wrote it in pitch blackness, with the lights off. Doesn't help that there's a kid living next door who started running up and down the stairs. Why do I keep writing things that freak me out? I don't understand it :(**

* * *

**Chapter Five**

**Pale Reflections**

That stupid robot had lied its rusted bronze backside off. Ashley had been wandering along the mirrored corridors for at least five minutes and she was yet to see another soul. All she saw was her own reflection – or _reflections_ rather, wandering alongside her and sometimes coming towards her at all angles. All she had managed to get out of this experience was to notice that she had been walking around with a bit of milkshake on her chin for god knows how long.

The place was disorientating. All the walls were mirrors from floor to ceiling. The ceiling above her was mirror. The floor beneath her feet was shiny and black, but she could still see her reflection. It was also quite bright, although she was unable to determine where the light was coming from. There was no glare on the glass and no lights that she could see. The corridors twisted and turned in no pattern. There were no turn offs or anything – the only way she could go was forward.

'I bet that Lily would have loved it in here,' she muttered, remembering the vain Leech that had been sucking the life out of the girls in her hometown. She sipped on her drink, which was still surprisingly full, and stopped walking.

'This is stupid.' She mumbled with a sigh. 'Biggest theme park in the universe and I'm looking at myself.'

Not having to take too long in thinking about it, she turned around and began to walk back the way she had came whilst mentally scolding herself for being stupid enough to go into a place in a deserted patch of park. What would the Doctor say? She was going to make sure he wouldn't find out.

The corridor twisted slightly and she was too busy checking how much milkshake she had left to see the dead end in front of her. She walked right into the mirror, hitting her head and dropping the cup. The peachy coloured gloop splashed up her front.

'Whoa!' she cried, backing away from the mirror. She grimaced at the mess on her clothes and began to wipe at them, but it only seemed to make her look worse. 'Great. Just to top it off. Can't I go somewhere and just have a good time?'

Then she realised what had happened. She had come to a dead end. She frowned, glancing behind her. That wasn't possible. There had been no turn offs. The corridor had just carried on, straight ahead. So how come, even though she had come this way, she was at a dead end?

Ashley ran her hands over the glass. It was cold to the touch. She pushed on it, but it didn't budge. She tried the mirrors on either side of her, and got exactly the same result. Feeling slightly panicked, she turned and went back up the corridor. She must have missed a turning. Probably too busy thinking about how much she wanted to hot wire that rust bucket outside for persuading her to get into this mess in the first place.

There were no turnings. And to unsettle her even more, when she turned around there was a mirror directly behind her. Blocking off the corridor she had just walked along.

'Okay…' she frowned, glancing around. 'Now that's not fair.'

There was no doubt about it. The walls were moving. Someone was making the effort to get her lost. Maybe that was the point? She didn't know how these places worked and she couldn't assume she knew. Maybe it was like some psychological ghost ride where they push you onto the verge of panic before spitting you outside with a guy in a rubber mask shouting '_Boo_!' at you and making you squeal like a baby. Well, that would explain why it was in a deserted patch of the park. Atmosphere.

But no, something told her there was more to it than that. As usual, she had blundered right into something bad. She decided when she saw the Doctor she was going to make him keep her on reins or something.

'Just phone him you idiot…' she muttered, pulling the phone out of her pocket. She had almost forgotten that she had it. She scrolled through the phonebook, which was stocked with various phone numbers, none of which she recognised. There was no Doctor, but there was a Tardis. She called it, not expecting an answer. And she didn't get one.

'What the hell is the point of giving me a phone if you don't even have one?' she growled at it in frustration. 'It's about as helpful as an umbrella in a burning building!'

She stuffed the phone away again and sighed heavily. As she raised her head again she caught something moving out of the corner of her eye. She looked up sharply, eyes narrowed. She heard footsteps ahead. Light, quick footsteps.

'Is there anyone there?' she called, moving forward. 'Hello?'

They were definitely footsteps. They sounded like they belonged to a child. Ashley quickened her pace and followed the sound.

'Hello? Look, I didn't realise this place was going to be so weird. Do you think you could show me the way out? My friend is probably looking for me and…'

She trailed off as she turned the corner and saw a child standing in the middle of the corridor. Her dress was marked and torn, her hair matted. The paint on her face was smudged and smeared. Ashley's eyes widened and her mouth dropped open. The creepy clown child was frightening for sure, but there was something a little more terrifying about the situation.

The little girl didn't have a reflection.

Ashley gaped moronically. The girl's expression didn't change. She found herself backing away slowly and it wasn't long before she was stopped by another mirror behind her.

'Walls moving again.' She squeaked. 'Should have known.'

'He sees you.' The little girl said quietly. 'He's going to make you last forever.'

Ashley blinked and swallowed. 'I… I'm sorry? Who? Who sees me?'

'The bad man.' The little girl replied. 'He sees you. He's going to make you last forever. He makes us all last forever.'

'Who is he? What bad man?' Ashley glanced around frantically for any cameras. There was nothing. 'Who are…'

The little girl was gone. Ashley looked around, but there was no sign of her. She ran her hands through her hair and sighed heavily.

'Well this is just bloody fantastic.'


	6. Barefaced Wires

**Chapter Six **

**Barefaced Wires**

The door was locked, which wasn't a surprise. The Doctor had circled the building once already, which took quite a long time due to the size of it, but found nothing of interest. A control panel on the left hand side that was broken and looked like it had been for a long time. There were no other entrances or exits apart from the front. Must have a health and safety inspector's nightmare. There wasn't a fire door in sight.

The Doctor pulled on the front door, but it wouldn't budge. Inspecting it he realised that it was bolted and padlocked in about seven different places, obviously to keep people out.

'Or to keep them in,' he mused aloud. He pulled out the sonic screwdriver and began to remove the padlocks.

'Excuse me sir but this area is prohibited to the general public. Could you please return to the main area of the park.'

Surprised, the Doctor looked around. He couldn't see anyone. 'Where are you?'

'In the booth, sir.'

He looked towards a small, dilapidated booth to see a Series 10 G-800 android with its grimy head turned towards him. At the sight of it the Doctor grinned and headed over.

'Well look at you!' he cried happily. 'I haven't seen a Series 10 G-800 for years! I thought you lot were replaced by the Series 12s?'

The droid's head tilted with a mechanical whir and a rusty creak. 'Pardon me, sir, but 'Series 12' is not in my databanks. I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you again to head back to the main park for your own safety.'

The Doctor leaned on the counter with his elbows and propped his chin on his hands. 'Oh I loved the Series 10. You were all so polite. The Law Enforcement models were the best,' he chuckled. 'I saw one disarming a pretty aggravated Hexarook and while they had him pinned down they were asking him how he would rate their tactics in taking him down. Brilliant lot, you are. I don't even know why they replaced you.'

'I'm sorry sir but you are going to have to return to the main park.'

The Doctor eyed the droid. 'Probably because you're all so repetitive.' He straightened up and flattened the front of his coat down. 'There was a little girl running around out here. Face painted like a clown. You didn't see where she went, did you?'

'My apologies sir, but it was your movement at the door that powered me up. I am designed to keep the building clear by informing people to return to the park.'

The Doctor nodded. 'Fair enough. But surely the signs would be enough for that. And anyway, they normally use Series 11 Warnbots for stuff like this. I can't imagine the people who run this theme park leaving a rusty Series 10 to do this job. It would be cheaper for them to sell you for scrap and buy a Warnbot.'

'The reasons for my being here are not in my databanks.' The droid replied. 'I am programmed to keep this place clear. I'm sorry sir but you are going to have to return-'

'To the main area of the park, yeah I know.' The Doctor pushed himself up on the counter so he could see over the side. 'Oh now that is fantastic.' He dropped back down and jogged around to the door on the side of the booth. The droid's head followed him, creaking and whirring with the movement. The Doctor pushed the door open and grinned at what he had discovered.

'I'm sorry sir, but this booth is out of bounds to the general public.' The droid's top half was perfectly in tact and in full working order, apart from the rust and the creaky joints, but it's lower half was just a mass of open wires and circuitry, propped on a metal drum.

'You weren't put here by the owners of the park,' the Doctor said, pushing on his glasses and kneeling beside the mass of wires. 'You're someone's house guard, aren't you?'

'I'm sorry sir but I'm going to have to…'

'Yeah yeah,' the Doctor nodded. 'I'll just be a minute…' He inspected the wiring. 'It's a bit amateurish, but enough to do the job. Can you tell me who did this?'

'The individual who put me here is not in my databanks.'

'Doesn't sound like there's a lot in your databanks.' The Doctor commented. 'When did you last receive an update?'

'The date of my last update is not in my databanks.'

'What _is_ in your databanks?'

'My job is to keep people away from the hall of mirrors for their own safety.'

The Doctor looked at the droid thoughtfully for a moment, and then turned his attention back to the wiring. He noticed a blue wire with a hook on the end. Narrowing his eyes he unhooked it from the circuit board it was attached to, and then hooked it to another board.

'What is in your databanks now?'

The droid suddenly became very animated, waving its hands and moving its head. 'This is the biggest hall of mirrors in the universe. People come from far and wide to see this place. There's even a restaurant in the middle that serves the most delicious food ever created! You will be kicking yourself later if you don't check it out now!'

The Doctor straightened up. 'Isn't the hall of mirrors dangerous?'

'Dangerous? Of course not! Right now there are over a thousand individuals inside making their way to the centre. I'll tell you what; I'll let you go in for free. A twenty-minute free exploration of the biggest hall of mirrors in the universe. How does that sound?'

'That sounds great.' The Doctor beamed, stepping out of the booth.

'Great choice!' the droid exclaimed. 'And I'll see you on the other side, miss!'

The Doctor looked back with a slight frown, but as soon as he reached the door the droid had shut down. Why had it suddenly gone from calling him 'sir' to calling him 'miss'?

He carried on removing the padlocks and then stepped inside.

The corridors were quite narrow and if he was prone to claustrophobia, the Doctor thought he might have had to leave. But he had been in worse places that this and, well, being surrounded by himself wasn't so bad. Sometimes he forgot what his face looked like with it changing so often. This one was his favourite so far. He hoped he wouldn't have to change it for a while.

He knew there was something wrong straight away because there were no turn offs so he wasn't surprised to turn around and see that the corridor behind him had become a dead end. He rolled his eyes and sighed.

'Just once I'd like to go somewhere without getting trapped. Once. Is that too much to ask?'

He carried on forward, seeing as it was the only way he could go, and it wasn't long before he noticed something on the floor in front of him. He squatted down in front of the spilt drink and peered at it curiously. It was still colder than room temperature, so it mustn't have been there very long. He dipped a finger in it and licked it.

'Liklus!' he grimaced. 'Oh, urgh!' He stood up, wiping his hands on his trousers. 'Someone's feeling brave.'

He heard movement behind one of the mirrors to his left. He moved to it and pushed it with both hands. It wouldn't budge. There was definitely someone passing, probably along another corridor. Probably the same person who dropped the drink.

'Hello?' he called. 'Is there someone there?'

There was a skid of feet. 'Hello!' an all too familiar voice replied desperately. 'Oh thank God, I thought I was all alone. The walls keep moving and I can't find my way out. Do you know how to get out?'

'Oh it would be you, wouldn't it?' the Doctor sighed, imagining Ashley on the other side of the wall, probably covered in Liklus drink by the splatter pattern on the floor. 'What are you doing here?'

'Doctor!' Ashley cried. 'Oh hell I was hoping I wouldn't have to tell you about this.'

'You wandered into a deserted hall of mirrors.' The Doctor leaned against the mirror and shook his head. 'Typical.'

'The robot told me it was full!' she insisted. 'And anyway, by the looks of it you did the same thing!'

'Ah but I knew it was deserted. I came in knowing full well that there was something wrong.'

'Why the hell would you do that?'

The Doctor shrugged his shoulders. 'I dunno. For fun.'

He heard her sigh heavily on the other side of the mirror. 'So now what? Are you going to help me get out?'

'Can't at the minute.' The Doctor replied, looking both ways up the corridor. 'I'm boxed in.'

'You too? Well that's just brilliant.'

Both ends of the corridors had closed off and now there was nowhere for him to go. By the sound of Ashley's movements he gathered she was in the same situation.

'So what's the plan?' Ashley asked.

'I don't have one.'

'What do you mean you don't have one?'

'I mean I don't have one.'

There was silence for a moment. 'So what then? We just stay here until we starve?'

'Well the walls will probably change again at some point so… probably not until we starve. Could be a possibility though, although I've got a spilt drink here to tide me over. But I probably wouldn't have that even if I was starving to death.'

'What? Why? What's wrong with it?'

'Liklus is just crushed Gingreen bugs. I've never been one for the crushed bug thing.'

'Don't say things like that.' She sounded sick.

The Doctor sighed and sat down against the mirror. 'Well at least we can keep each other company.'

'Fan-bloody-tastic.' Ashley muttered in response.

The Doctor sat for a moment, twiddling his fingertips. He was just about to start talking again when he noticed something on the mirror opposite. He narrowed his eyes and watched the steamy patch slowly spread. Then a handprint formed in the centre, small and chubby fingered – obviously a child's. He moved towards it and ran his finger over the steamy patch. It was on the other side of the mirror.

'Oh Ashley?' he called.

'Yeah?'

'You're not scared of ghosts, are you?'


	7. Confiding

**Chapter Seven**

**Confiding**

There's no such thing as ghosts.

There's no such thing as ghosts.

_But the little girl…_

There's no such thing as ghosts.

Ashley paced her mirrored cell and chewed on her thumb anxiously. She could hear the Doctor scraping around in his own little room on the other side of the mirror doing only god knows what. The last thing he had said was to ask her if she believed in ghosts.

'Of course not!' she had cried, shaken by the suggestion. 'Don't be so stupid. Stop trying to scare me.'

And he hadn't said anything else, just thumped around. She could hear his screwdriver whirring away but apparently nothing was coming of it. They were trapped. Probably forever. After the predicaments they had been in – the creatures they had ran from – they were going to end up starving to death while watching themselves wither away and occasionally get freaked out by the little ghost girl with her cryptic mutterings.

Ashley could think of a million and one better ways to go.

'Can't you move the walls back or something?' she called through the wall. 'Point your screwdriver diddly at it and move it back.'

'Don't you think I tried that?' the Doctor called back. 'And anyway, I'm busy.'

'Busy? What could you be doing that's more important than getting us out of here!'

'You're very shrill, did I ever tell you that? I don't think I've come across anyone quite as shrill as you. And when you panic you get this mad look in your eyes. Bit unsettling to be honest.'

Ashley frowned. 'What?'

'Look in the mirror if you think I'm wrong. Your left eye twitches.'

She felt annoyance rising up in her and she looked at her reflection. She scowled. Her eye wasn't twitching at all! What was he on about? She just looked annoyed, which was understandable taking the way he was going on. He didn't seem to care that they were about to die-

'Oh my god!' she wailed, mortified. 'I twitch!'

'Told you.'

Ashley rubbed her eye after it twitched for the second time. 'Why did no one tell me I had a psycho twitch?'

'Probably because they thought you were a psycho.' The Doctor replied. 'Right, I think I know what's going on. Two of my walls have just moved so I'm guessing they're on a timer. In about… well… my guess is in about ten minutes the corridor will open up again. Hopefully the wall between us will move so we don't get split up even more. So I hope you're pleased to know that we probably won't starve to death in here after all.'

Ashley grimaced at her reflection. 'That's why Manny calls me Twitchy when he's angry with me, isn't it?'

'Oh quit your moaning. I wish I hadn't told you now.'

She sat down with her back to the mirror and sighed heavily. 'Sorry. Bet you're sick of me pissing and moaning every five minutes.'

'Well…' The Doctor paused.

'You're supposed to say of course not.'

'Oh right. Of course not!'

Ashley rolled her eyes but couldn't help but smile. 'I'd love to know how you do it.'

'How I do what?'

'I don't know how the whole time thing works in the Tardis, but I think it was about the equivalent of what, four days ago? You were trapped in that VR game. Well, we both were… And now you would think it had never happened. You've gone completely back to normal. I'd love to know how you can move on so quickly.'

There was silence from the other side. Ashley bit her lip and glanced down. She wanted him to talk about it, to open up. Of course he hadn't gone back to normal, but she thought if she said that she would get a reaction and seeing as they were practically forced together like this, he had no choice but to answer her questions. About a minute had passed and he still hadn't answered.

'Doctor?' she pushed, turning her head to the mirror.

'It's a long story.' He said flatly. He knew what she was trying to do.

'Well you're not planning on going anywhere, are you?'

'Ashley, I-'

'Look, I understand that it's a sore subject and all that. I get it, I do. But at the end of the day I'm travelling with you. We're travelling through time and space together, just the two of us, so you obviously have some trust in me. I trust you with my life, Doctor, and I would tell you anything. You want to trade stories? I've got some embarrassing ones I could trade. When I was five I was at my aunties wedding and I stripped down to my knickers and ran through down the alter after her shouting I needed a pee. I've got more if that's not good enough.'

'That's enough of those, thank you.' He sounded a little amused.

'It's just… I want you to tell me. I know you're already keeping things from me. But surely that shows how much I trust you. You know something important about me, about the things I can do, but you know it's for the best if I don't know. I understand that. I may not completely agree with it, but I understand. I'd just like you to be able to show that you trust me too.'

She waited for him to respond, but he had fallen silent. After about thirty seconds, she sighed and slumped against the wall. Great. Not only were they trapped, she had made the situation awkward. Well done, Ashley.

'There was a war.' The Doctor said suddenly, taking her by surprise.

'What?' Ashley asked, shuffling around to face the mirror and being greeted by her own face.

'A war. The Last Great Time War. Destroyed my whole planet, among many others.' He paused. 'I was the only one left. The rest are gone. Dead. And _them_,' he spat the word viciously. '_They_ keep coming back. Keep coming back to rub my nose in it. I lose everything, everyone, and they just keep coming back. Over and over again.'

'Who are they?' Ashley asked quietly.

'Daleks.'

She had never heard of them, but by the hatred in the Doctor's voice she knew better than to ask about them. That could wait for another time, she thought. 'What about that girl? The blonde girl. She didn't look like she belonged there. Everyone else were wearing robes and stuff.'

'That was Rose Tyler.'

Ashley paused. 'Is she dead?'

'Oh no. No she's very much alive. She's just not here anymore.'

'Who was she to you?'

'She used to travel with me.'

There was more to it than that, she could tell by his tone, but she had pried more information out of him than she was entitled to. Whatever Rose had been to him was his business, not hers. The fact he had wanted to stay in the VR game made sense now. If that had happened to her, she wouldn't want to leave either.

'Um… why can't you go back in time? Back to before the war and prevent it or something. Isn't that what people use time machines for? Change the past?'

'The whole war is Time Locked.' The Doctor explained with a sad sigh. 'Although I've tried. Can't get through.'

'You're the last of your kind then?' Ashley sighed. 'That's pretty crap.'

The Doctor laughed. 'That's one way of putting it, yeah.'

Ashley nodded, unsure of what she was going to say now. This topic obviously wasn't going to go anywhere good. She didn't want to make him cry or anything, even though she doubted that he would. But still, she didn't want to depress the hell out of him. She had already managed to depress herself. A change of subject was in order.

'I've been practising!' she announced.

'Eh?' The Doctor asked in bemusement.

'My powers. I've been practising. When you weren't there of course. I didn't think you would approve of me settling little fires here there and everywhere.'

'As long as you weren't doing it in the Tardis.'

Ashley winced. 'Well…'

'What?!'

'It was only a little one. You didn't even notice and I was right behind you!' She carried on before he had a chance to interrupt her. 'Anyway, I can control it really well now. It's not just a case of _whomph_ and everything burns. I think I can do other things too. I keep on getting weird feelings in my head. I can't explain it… but I know I can do other things.' She paused thoughtfully. 'Do you know what I can do?'

'No.' he replied. 'Just what I've seen.'

'But you know what I am.'

Pause. 'Yes.'

'Tell me.'

He was silent for a moment. Ashley listened anxiously. Eventually, he sighed.

'You're not going to like it.' He told her. 'But I suppose I'll have to tell you.'

Ashley shuffled onto her knees, staring at the mirror in front of her even though she was looking at herself and not the Doctor. 'Tell me.'

'It's… it's complicated. I think you'll be surprised to learn that we do actually have something in common…'

Ashley blinked as her reflection changed suddenly, and drastically. All of a sudden she wasn't looking at herself, she was looking at a woman with black hair and wide blue eyes. She was sitting in the exact same position as she was. For a moment, Ashley thought it was she who had changed.

'Uh… Doctor?' she mumbled.

'You asked me to tell you and I'm telling. The least you can do is not interrupt, it's hard enough for me as it is.'

Ashley swallowed. 'Um… I'm looking at the mirror, right?'

'What's the matter, you noticed another twitch?'

'Not exactly.' Ashley winced.

The woman in the mirror moved forward quickly, slamming her hands on the mirror. Ashley fell backwards with a startled cry and looked at the woman in horror. She was mouthing something frantically, possibly even _screaming_, but Ashley heard no words from her mouth.

'There's someone in the mirror!' Ashley cried in panic. 'Doctor there's someone _in the mirror_!'

She blinked and the woman had vanished. She only saw her own frightened face looking back. A moment later and the wall behind her was moving. She scrambled away from it, watching with wide eyes.

'You stay where you are, Ashley,' the Doctor ordered. 'I'm going to find a way around to you, okay?'

'You'll get lost!' she wailed, shaken by the apparition she had seen. 'Doctor! Don't go!'

But she could hear his footsteps heading away. She looked through the newly opened corridor and swallowed hard.


	8. Misguided

**A/N: I've been a bit distracted today and so I'm not sure I'm all that happy with the way this chapter was written... I might rewrite and repost it later, but it'll do for now :p Thanks as always to everyone reading and reviewing! You're more awesome than platypusus xD**

* * *

**Chapter Eight**

**Misguided**

The Doctor jogged along the corridor. Judging by the way it was turning, he assumed he should reach Ashley in a matter of minutes. That was as long as the walls didn't move again. He already knew the corridor had closed off behind him, and that he didn't mind. He couldn't believe he had been so close to telling her the truth after he had sworn to himself never to tell her.

He wasn't even sure why he had told her about Gallifrey and Rose. He hadn't wanted to, but he did anyway. It was almost as if he had no control over the information he shared with her. A small thought sprung up in the back of his mind, but he didn't like it and shoved it away immediately.

It was no good worrying about that stuff now. They had something a little more urgent to be dealing with. Someone was desperately trying to make contact with the two of them in here. They had both been brought here by someone or something. For help? Maybe. The Doctor would rather assume that was the reason. He didn't feel that they were threatening, although the rerouted android out front was still making him slightly nervous.

All that was to come to. He had to find Ashley first.

* * *

Ashley stood watching the new entrance anxiously. She hadn't been able to hear the Doctor's footsteps for a few minutes now and it was worrying her. Surely if the corridor had been turning the other way he would have just come back? She wondered whether she should go look for him, but she knew that if she stayed still he had more chance of finding her.

At least that's what she had always been told about behind lost. She didn't think there was much truth in it.

And plus, she didn't fancy running into the creepy clown child ghost again. It was almost as if someone had tapped in her subconscious and showed her the thing that scared her the most. She hated clowns, and she hated ghost kids. Someone _wanted_ to give her a heart attack.

She heard a tapping to her right and she didn't want to look. She closed her eyes tightly and gritted her teeth. The tapping persisted. Out of curiosity more than anything else, she turned and looked with one eye, and then gasped.

The woman had returned and was standing in the mirror, her hand placed against it and the other one knocking repetitively. She was saying something, but Ashley couldn't hear her. She watched her for a few moments, trying to calm her pounding heart.

'I… I can't hear you.' She said, shaking her head. She pointed to her ears. 'I can't hear what you're saying.'

The woman continued to mouth words at her. Ashley glanced back to the opened corridor, hoping the Doctor would appear. He didn't. So slowly, she turned to the mirror and stepped forward.

'Are you trapped in there?' she asked, and then realised that it was a stupid question. 'Of course you're trapped in there. Um… do you want my help?'

The woman continued to knock, seeming to become more and more apprehensive the closer Ashley got. Ashley stopped about an arms distance away and studied the strange reflection that wasn't her own. The woman was only young, a little older than herself, but she looked worn. She had purple rings around her eyes. She was just a little too thin. And she was very, very pale.

'Are you a ghost?' Ashley enquired curiously. She had never seen a ghost before. She had never believed in them, but if the Doctor said they existed… well… they existed. Slowly, she reached out towards the mirror. The woman began to shake her head violently, her face going red with the amount of force she was using to should. Ashley stopped for a second. Then she allowed her fingers to touch the mirror.

'_Don't touch the mirror! Don't touch it!'_

The woman's shrill voice made her skull vibrate and Ashley tried to snap her hands back to her head. Her left hand reached its destination fine, but she found she couldn't move her right hand. She felt a pulling on it. When she looked, the surface of the mirror had changed into a kind of liquid and it was engulfing her hand. She struggled and pulled, but it felt like she was being sucked in quicksand. The more she struggled, the more she was pulled in. Before she knew it, it was up to her shoulder.

'Doctor!' she shrieked frantically. '_Doctor! Doct-'_

Once the mirror covered her face, she couldn't speak anymore.

* * *

The Doctor saw a light ahead and slowed to a trot. He frowned in bewilderment. He had expected to find Ashley by now. He had been heading in the right direction. Had he found the exit? That would be unlikely because he had been heading in the opposite direction to the way he had come in. He had made sure of it.

But there was no doubt. Through the door ahead he could see the theme park. He stepped out into the sun, a bewildered frown on his face. 'That's not right…' he mumbled. He glanced to the android, which was currently silent.

The Doctor hesitated, and then went back in. He walked straight ahead for five minutes, and then saw a light ahead. Frowning, he jogged to it.

He was outside again, staring at the theme park.

'Oh no.' he shook his head. 'Oh no you don't.'

He turned and ran into the hall of mirrors, heading in a perfectly straight line. A few minutes later and he burst outside again. The android came to like.

'I'm sorry sir, but I'm going to have to ask you to return to the main park. For your own safety.'

The Doctor turned and looked at the hall of mirrors, scratching his head. He screwed up his face in confusion and exclaimed, 'What?'


	9. Cellmates

**A/N: Alreet! :D I won't be updating as often as usual because I have stupid things to do that are boring and I wish I didn't have to do but I have to :( There's going to be quite a break between this episode and Episode Six, but I will be doing it! xD**

* * *

**Chapter Nine**

**Cellmates**

Ashley felt sick and achy and strangely hungry all at once. She groaned, rising her hand to massage her forehead. She was lying on her back with her eyes closed, rising out of the darkness of unconsciousness slowly and grudgingly. She couldn't remember anything. She had been sitting in the Tardis. No, they had landed…

A theme park. She recoiled at the memory of a creepy clown doing card tricks, but then others clouded over it. The hall of mirrors. The little girl. The reflection.

The fact that she had just been sucked in a mirror.

Ashley yelled out at the same time her eyes opened, causing the pale faced woman to shoot back about ten feet. Ashley bolted upright, looking around everywhere with wide eyes. It took her a good couple of panicked seconds to realise there were three other people in the room with her. She looked at them all in turn, and then let out another panicked yell.

'It's okay,' a familiar woman smiled nervously, crawling across the polished black floor to her. 'The transference is pretty hard hitting. You'll be okay in a minute.' She was the woman who had been banging on the mirror, although now she looked a little less intimidating. She looked at Ashley warily with wide, sparkling eyes. 'Don't be scared, okay?'

Ashley just blinked at her, half grimacing in horror. 'What happened? Where am I?' She looked around frantically. The room was large a square, with the same walls and ceiling as the mirrored corridors, only there was just a five foot gap between the floor and ceiling.

'I tried to tell you.' The woman shook her head sadly. 'We tried to warn you, but it's hard to communicate when you can't hear us.'

Ashley glanced around at the other two females that were occupying the low-ceilinged room. She noticed the small girl with the painted face immediately. She stood easily in the low room, watching Ashley through flaking and worn paint. There was also a teenage girl, who was hugging her knees and peering over the top of them. Her hair was a beautiful golden colour and hung in curls around her face. She didn't look as dishevelled as the woman with the black hair and the clown girl.

'What the hell just happened?' Ashley cried. She frowned and turned on the black haired woman. 'You pulled me through the bloody mirror!'

'She didn't!' the teenage girl barked. 'She was telling you not to touch the mirror. Went and did it anyway though, didn't you? Idiot.'

Ashley looked at her in disbelief. The black haired woman turned and hissed at her to be quiet. The teenager lowered her head again and fell silent.

'I'm sorry. She… she still hasn't gotten over it.'

Ashley swallowed. 'Gotten over what? Who are you?'

'I'm Dina.' The black haired woman smiled, almost apologetically. 'This is Saskia,' she nodded to the teen, and then to the little girl. 'And that's Melanie. Although she doesn't talk.'

Ashley's gaze lingered on the little girl for a moment. 'She talked to me.'

Dina and Saskia exchanged brief looks. 'Much.' Dina nodded. 'She doesn't talk much. She's been here the longest, you see.'

'Look, I'm having a hard time trying to figure out what happened here.' Ashley sighed, crossing her legs. 'Is this like a secret part of the mirror maze or something? Where's the exit?'

Dina laughed once, shrilly, and then covered her mouth. 'I'm sorry. I'm sorry I don't mean to laugh.'

'Can you just tell me please?' Ashley frowned, losing patience. 'And where the hell is the Doctor? He said he was coming to get me.'

'No one's coming.' Saskia muttered. 'No one ever comes.'

Ashley blinked and looked to Dina for an explanation. Dina shifted so she was more comfortable, and then sighed.

'I've been in here for nearly nine years now. Saskia's been here for four months.' She paused and glanced to Melanie. 'Twenty years for Mel.'

'What?' Ashley cried. 'How is that possible?' She looked to the little girl in confusion. 'How could she have been here for twenty years? She's like, five or something.'

Dina pursed her lips and thought for a moment. 'We don't know what this place is, but we're trapped here. It's like… It's like some kind of time lock or something. We don't age. We never age. We never get hungry, or thirsty. We just stay here. In this mirrored room. For ever.' Her eyes glazed over briefly, and then she offered Ashley a weak smile.

Ashley was shocked. 'That's impossible. You would have gone insane.'

Dina let out another shrill, quick laugh and covered her mouth. 'Oh we are. In our own ways. Melanie won't talk and, well, I have my moments.' She shrugged and smiled a little too broadly, causing Ashley to shudder. 'Saskia has been okay, but she's getting twitchy.'

Saskia grimaced at Dina, but said nothing.

'But…' Ashley desperately tried to understand what was going on, but her brain refused to accept it. 'But that's impossible.'

'Give it four months, love.' Saskia grumbled. 'Then you tell me it's impossible. I should have died of starvation ages ago.'

'Well who's doing this?' Ashley demanded. 'Someone must be doing this.'

'We don't know.' Dina replied. 'A light comes on sometimes. A light so bright we can't see, but then it goes off. That's all. All that ever happens.'

Ashley looked to the little girl again and shook her head stubbornly. 'But I saw her! I saw her in the maze! She wasn't in the mirrors. She didn't even have a reflection!'

Dina nodded and half closed her eyes as if she was explaining to a child. 'Yes, I know. Melanie has been here the longest. She's figured out a way to leave for short periods of time. Just ten minutes or so. Then she gets pulled back.'

'Then why doesn't she tell anyone what's happening here?' Ashley frowned.

'She did.' Dina nodded sadly. 'No one believes it.'

Ashley looked down thoughtfully. 'The Doctor will get us out of here.' She looked back up with a spark in her eye. 'He's good at this kind of stuff, you'll see. He'll get us out.'

Dina smiled brightly and nodded. 'Yes, we know. Melanie brought him here after you came in. She said he was clever. That he could help but…' Her smiled faltered. 'But he's lost now.'

'Lost?' Ashley sniggered even though she felt sick. 'Can't be anymore lost than us.'

'He's outside.' Saskia said flatly. 'He won't be able to get back in. If the mirrors don't want you, you don't get in.'

Ashley frowned in thought for a few moments. She ran her hands through her hair and turned to the little girl. 'Melanie, can you go back out to the Doctor?'

Melanie said nothing. She just stared.

'Couldn't you have washed her face or something?' Ashley said weakly. 'The clown thing is creepy.'

'I can.' Melanie said in a quiet voice. 'For a little while.'

Ashley moved towards her and smiled. 'Can you take things? Like notes?'

Melanie thought about it. 'I've never tried.'

'We'll try now.' Ashley smiled, and then paused. She checked her pockets. She grinned at the old receipt she produced. 'Um, does anyone have a pen?'

They all glanced around at each other. Saskia cleared her throat. 'I have a uh, an eyeliner.'

Ashley half shrugged. 'That'll do I suppose.'

She took the eyeliner and wrote a quick note to the Doctor. She handed it to the little girl and let out a final yell of surprise when Melanie closed her eyes tightly and then vanished from sight.


	10. Hindrance

**A/N: Apologies if anyone thinks this chapter is crap but... well, I haven't had much time to write so this chapter is pretty short and I seem to have a problem with writing the Doctor when he's on his tod. (tod means on his own for anyone not in the know :P) But it is starting to wrap up after the next chapter. Hopefully. I only want this one to be about thirteen chapters long. AND THANKS FOR BEING SO FRACKING AWESOME EVERYONE!! xD I love you all. Like cookie dough. And I LOVE cookie dough. ((drools))**

* * *

**Chapter Ten**

**Hindrance**

After several more fruitless attempts to get back inside the hall of mirrors, the Doctor gave up. He stood in front of the doors; arms crossed, and stared at the building in deep thought. He couldn't figure it out, but it was like he was running through a tunnel only to come out in the place he entered. It _was_ possible, it had happened to him before in his Tardis, but not in such a small place.

Bizarre.

Still frowning, he turned and walked towards the android, which immediately creaked into life on his approach.

'I'm sorry sir but I'm going to have to-'

'Oh shut up you.' The Doctor replied, climbing into the booth. 'Tell me something useful for once.' Immediately, he started rewiring the android, resulting in various twitches and creaks from it. Then something happened that he didn't expect. The androids head blew off with a shower of sparks.

The Doctor climbed out of the booth and glanced around, finding the head lying smoking on the ground. With a sigh he headed over to it and picked it up.

'Well that's just fantastic.' He mumbled, dropping it back down. 'Now what?'

He racked his brain for a solution. By now it was obvious that someone, or something, wanted Ashley in the hall of mirrors and wanted him out. For what reason though was unclear. More than likely had something to do with the ghostly apparitions inside. More than likely? God now he was understating everything.

'Just once,' he mumbled as he tossed the android head aside. 'Bit of relaxation for once. Is that too much?'

The image of the control panel on the side of the building hit him suddenly and he blinked. Then cursed himself for not thinking of it straight away. He raced around the outside until he reached the blown fuses and rotten wires and hunched in front of it.

'This can't possibly be behind it,' he mumbled aloud as he examined the dead wiring. He thought for a moment. 'Unless…'

The Doctor got his fingers underneath the edge of the panel face and tugged on it. It fell off in his hands and he grinned at what it had been covering.

'Oh clever,' he said, pushing on his glasses to peer at the spotless, perfectly in tact control panel. 'Confusion bond. Very, very clever.'

Whoever was behind all of this was very good with electronics. The android had been quite badly wired but that could have been a rushed job. This though, this was top of the range. Only a fully qualified electrician could come up with this. It was almost even too good for the Doctor to figure out. Almost.

He pulled the sonic screwdriver out of his pocket and began the process of turning off the confusion bond. Perhaps even return all the moving walls to their original places. Then he should be able to find Ashley easily and get her out of there. But it seemed there were a few security firewalls he had to break down. Whoever built this had gone to great lengths for it to keep on running for a long time.

'What's all this for, eh?' The Doctor mumbled to it. 'Why go so far to keep people out? Just what is it you're hiding?'

He felt a sudden chill and shuddered so much he nearly dropped the screwdriver. He glanced around, actually feeling a pang of unabridged fear that he hardly ever felt. It disappeared quickly. There was nothing around him. Not a soul, so the saying goes. He gathered himself and went to turn his attention back to the control panel when something caught his eye. The small piece of white paper was held down beneath a stone. It fluttered lazily in the gentle breeze.

The Doctor hesitated, glanced around, and then picked it up. He frowned at it, and then grimaced. 'Oh I've never been able to read backwards writing properly.'

The note was written back to front, like the way a normal letter looked when you put it in front of a mirror. The Doctor rubbed his eyes and put the paper close to his face.

'Doctor, it's me…' He read, then rolled his eyes. 'I saw a woman in the mirror and when I touched it I got sucked into this little room with three other people. They say they've been trapped in a time lock and can't get out. You have to help us. PS, if you help us get out I promise I'll never wander off ever again.'

The Doctor sighed. 'That'll be the day.' He mumbled. He scrunched up the backwards note and pushed it in his pocket. He turned back to the control panel and clapped his hands. 'Right then my friend. Looks like you are hiding a pocket of stopped time from me. Let's see if we can find it together.'

He moved forward once again with the screwdriver, but before he could return to work something hard and heavy hit him across the back of the head. When he wasn't knocked out straight away, the attacker followed with a swift kick to his temple.


	11. Preserving Beauty

**A/N: Eeyy I managed to get a chance to write a chapter with a decent length. Man I need to get myself one of those dopplegangers, so they can do all my hard work while I kick back, eat cookie dough and write crap lol! Although whenever they do the doppleganger thing on TV it always goes horribly wrong... I don't fancy being killed by my mirror image... o.O**

* * *

**Chapter Eleven**

**Preserving Beauty**

Ashley wanted to pace, but the low ceiling wouldn't allow her. Instead she settled on sitting with her back to the others with her legs splayed out like an overgrown tot and chewed on her thumb thoughtfully. The little girl, Mel, hadn't returned yet. The other two were sitting together on the other side of the room, talking in hushed tones. Ashley could see their reflections in the mirror, but she paid them no mind.

Breaking the mirrors was probably not an option. If it were that easy to get out then the others probably would have done that by now. She wasn't even going to waste time asking. There didn't seem to be any doors either and these walls didn't move. At least she couldn't see any gaps in the mirrors. But realistically that meant nothing. They could slide down, or up, or perhaps just vanish altogether. This place had technology she didn't understand.

And that just hit the nail on the head, didn't it? She didn't understand. She didn't understand things about time locks. This was all alien to her - pardon the pun – which made her just as stuck as the other three. Perhaps this was the one time the Doctor didn't save her? What if he had already given up and gone away in his Tardis, leaving her to dwell in her mirrored cell for all of time, watching herself grow weary but never aging. Watching herself go insane.

'Mel!' Dina cried out suddenly. 'Did you do it? Did you find him?'

Ashley spun around to see Mel standing in the same spot she had been before she left. She looked to Ashley directly.

'Well?' she demanded. 'Did you find him or not?'

'I found him,' Mel nodded. 'And I left the note, but the Bad Man got him first.'

Dina and Saskia's faces both dropped. They pulled each other into a tight hug. Ashley looked at them all, panic rising. 'What?' she demanded. 'What bad man? Is the Doctor okay?'

Mel shrugged her shoulders and said nothing.

'You must know!' Ashley yelled, moving forward. 'Well what happened? Tell me!'

'Calm down,' Dina said gently. 'There's nothing you can do.'

'Tell me what's happening! Right now!'

Dina shook her head and put her hand on Ashley's shoulder. 'There's nothing you can do.'

Ashley jerked away from her, tears forming in her eyes. 'What happened? Is he dead? Has he left me?'

Dina shook her head sadly and began to speak again, but a sudden bright light filled the room, preventing her from doing so. Ashley looked around in shock, but could see nothing against the glare of the light coming from the back wall. Dina, Saskia and Mel huddled together, heads bowed.

'What's that?' Ashley demanded, squinting into the light.

'Don't look at it!' Saskia yelled. 'It's him!'

'It's the bad man!' Mel sobbed.

Ashley squinted harder, but the light really was too bright. 'Doctor?' she called. 'Doctor can you hear me?'

Dina grabbed her wrist and pulled her back. 'Don't look at it!' she hissed harshly. 'You don't want him to pull you out.'

'Pull me out?' Ashley asked, confused and frightened.

'Trust me.' Dina said sternly. 'Don't look at the light.'

* * *

The Doctor felt a bit annoyed.

Actually, not just a bit annoyed – he was pushing furious.

It didn't seem like more than a week ago that he had been hit across the back of his head and tied up in a dark room at the BLFC. He could almost swear down he was in the same room again due to him being unable to see anything. Only this time there wasn't someone singing behind him.

'Okay then,' he sighed, knowing there was someone there lurking in the darkness. 'Well done. You got me. Now can we just skip all the theatrics and get to the part where I escape and go help my friend?'

There was a snicker from somewhere in the darkness. Then shuffling footsteps. 'You're not scared?' Came a rough, croaky voice. 'Most of them are scared.'

'Yeah well I've seen a lot of scary things.' The Doctor replied with a sigh. 'And I've been tied to a lot of chairs in a lot of dark rooms. You kind of get used to it. Although I would appreciate it if you turned on the lights.'

'I'd rather they stay off for now.' The voice replied. The screech of a chair being dragged forward followed. The Doctor assumed the stranger had sat down not too far from him.

'I'm guessing you're responsible for all the weird goings on in the hall of mirrors, eh? That android was quite impressive. I'm sorry but I uh… accidentally blew his head off. Your confusion bond though, wow. Now that's something else. Can I ask how you managed to come up with it? Bet you were working on it for a long time, eh?'

The stranger was quiet for a moment. 'You're smart.' He said finally. 'Maybe a little too smart.'

'You've got that right,' The Doctor replied chirpily. 'If there's anyone in the Universe that is too smart, it's probably me. Now, where's Ashley.'

'Who?'

'Girl with bright red hair. You can't miss her. Talks to herself sometimes too, which I've caught her doing more than once. I mean, I talk to myself too every now and then. Sometimes it's the best conversation you can get, but she talks to herself about pancakes and weird stuff like that. Makes me wonder if I made a mistake bringing her along…'

'She's fine.'

The Doctor narrowed his eyes in the darkness. 'You wanted her specifically, didn't you?'

The stranger chuckled. 'You could say that. When I saw her in the crowds I couldn't bear the thought of her withering away. She's perfect as she is.'

'You're right, she is. And she's perfectly happy and un-withering with me. Now I'll give you one chance to end this civilly. Let me go, let her go and close down whatever it is you're doing here.'

The stranger chuckled again. 'I don't think so.'

The Doctor sighed. 'Thought not. Why does that never work?'

'The universe is a hard place to live in, Doctor,' the stranger told him, immediately causing the Doctor's ears to prick up because he couldn't remember telling him his name. 'Things grow old. Things change. Beautiful things become ugly things. People come, people go. The people you think are going to be there forever never are. The things you want to last forever never do. Nothing is eternal, Doctor. I think you of all people should know that.'

The Doctor glowered into the darkness. 'Who are you?'

The stranger moved across the room. 'I can tell you _what_ I am. I'm a victim of this merciless, ever changing universe. All I want is to hold onto the things I love, but as soon as I think I have a tight enough grip on it, it is cruelly dragged away from me. All I want is to be able to enjoy my short life while I have it.'

'Turn the lights on.' The Doctor demanded.

There was silence for a few moments. 'If you insist.'

A second later, bright lights flicked on. The Doctor winced and had to close his eyes against it. He blinked, trying to force his eyes to adjust faster. They wouldn't oblige and all he could make out was a shapeless figure against the bright light.

'Can you see what the universe has done to me, Doctor? The ravages of time. I've done my best to keep what I once had but…' He chuckled as he began to come into focus. 'I'm no doctor.'

The Doctor blinked, and finally gasped as the man in front of him came into view. His face was heavily bandaged. Only one ice-blue and bloodshot eye peered out of the stained bandages. Despite the fact his mouth was covered, the Doctor knew he was grinning.

'Do you want me to take them off?'

'I'd rather you didn't, thank you.' The Doctor replied, trying to sound unshaken. He opened his mouth to say more, but a familiar voice stopped him.

'What's that?' The voice sounded distorted, like it was having trouble keeping up with itself.

The Doctor looked around frantically. 'Ashley?'

'She can't hear you.' The man chuckled, moving to the Doctor's side. He pointed ahead, into the light. 'You can wave if you want though. Although the light is a little brighter on her side.'

Through the light the Doctor could see a mirrored room, containing four figures. Three of them were huddled against the back wall. Ashley was squinting towards him while a dark haired woman tugged on her wrist.

'Don't look at it! It's him!'

'Ashley! _Ashley_!'

'It's the bad man!'

'Doctor? Doctor can you hear me?'

'Yes! Yes I can hear you! I'm here!'

But she didn't show any sign that she heard. She sat down with the others. The Doctor watched helplessly. The man leaned close to his ear and whispered;

'Beautiful, isn't it?'


	12. Comeuppance

**A/N: I proof-read this one reeeeeally quickly so I don't think there was much point in me even trying to. I know this one is a bit action packed and to be honest, i could have written it a lot better so I apologise for not taking enough time. Forgive me? Well you better, it's rude to hold grudges xD And OMG I'm going to be breaking my rule of never having 13 chapters. I'm not supersticious or anything, but the number 13 still makes me uncomfortable. I have to wrap this up in one chapter or else it'll drag. I hope I don't get hit by a falling piano or something because I have 13 chapters o.O**

* * *

**Chapter Twelve**

**Comeuppance**

The Doctor stared into the bright light at the four females huddled together, cowering. Ashley was frowning towards it, trying to see, but the others had their heads lowered. They obviously knew why to be afraid.

'How… How have you done that?' the Doctor demanded when he managed to gather himself. 'What is that?'

The man stood by the Doctor's chair, arms crossed over his chest. 'There's a pocket here. It's the reason this part of the park was closed down. A pocket of frozen time. It's the one place where the universe cannot wreak havoc on our most beautiful possessions.'

The Doctor turned and glared at him. 'I demand you release them. Right _now_.'

The stranger turned and laughed. 'You know, your anger is very beautiful also, Doctor. Perhaps I should put you in there.'

'Why them? Why pick them? Why pick Ashley?'

The man sighed lightly. 'They are beautiful Doctor, can't you see?' He walked towards the light a little, hands behind his back like he was admiring a painting in a gallery. 'They are special, all of them. Melanie, the little girl… she was the first. I couldn't resist her. It was such a beautiful moment… seeing her so happy. She was skipping through the park, her hair catching the sunlight, her little dress catching the breeze… Breathtaking. I had to have her here.'

The Doctor was scowling at the back of him, saying nothing.

'Then Dina. Oh she was wonderful. Laughing and joking. Her hair… I think it was her hair that drew me to her. And her eyes. She has beautiful eyes. Saskia… her charm shone through. Her wit. I watched her in the park for a while. A dry sense of humour, but not in a mean way. She hasn't shown much of it recently, but she's still beautiful. She still deserves a place here.'

The Doctor narrowed his eyes. 'Ashley. Why Ashley?' Really, he didn't want to know. But he had to.

The man turned and looked at the Doctor with his one bloodshot eye. 'You know why, Doctor.'

The Doctor said nothing. He just glared.

'Well I suppose I should really tell you what is going to happen to you.' The man sighed heavily. 'Obviously I can't let you go… You could ruin everything with the amount you know.'

'So what are you going to do, kill me?' The Doctor chuckled. 'I'm sorry but a lot of people have said that and… well I suppose I've died a few times _technically_… but I'm still here in some form.' His expression darkened suddenly. 'You let me go now and I'll save you from the end that is sharp coming your way.'

The man regarded him for a moment. 'You have a wonderful face, Doctor. Has anyone ever told you that?'

The Doctor cocked his head. 'Well, a lot of people have commented that it's better than some of my previous faces but…'

The man reached up and began to remove the bandages. The Doctor trailed off, watching with a kind of horrific wonder as the man's face became clear. His skin was cracked and withered. Scars ran all over his face with thick stitches holding pieces together. As he smiled he revealed a mouthful of crooked teeth. With a gloved hand, he reached to the table beside him and picked up a scalpel.

'It would make a good replacement.' He grinned, moving forward. 'I've been after a new one for ages.'

* * *

Ashley stared into the light, feeling increasingly annoyed by the situation. She didn't like sitting and cowering, especially when she didn't know what she was cowering for. She turned to Dina, who had her head turned into her shoulder.

'Dina, what happens if you go into the light?'

Dina looked at her in confusion. 'What? I… I don't know. _He_ comes out of there! We're not exactly going to run into him!'

Ashley frowned. 'Well didn't it ever occur to you that when the light comes on then it means there's an opening to get out? If he comes in that way, we can come out that way.'

Dina grabbed her arm and shook her head. 'You can't go out there. He'll kill you.'

Ashley shook her away. 'I've dealt with some potential killery things. One psycho guy can't be too much to deal with.' She stood up.

'Please, Ashley,' Dina begged. 'Don't go.'

Ashley shook her head. 'I have to. I'm not sitting here forever.' She paused. 'Come with me, I promise you'll be safe.'

Dina shook her head. Saskia and Melanie showed no signs of moving. Ashley nodded, understanding their fear.

'I'll come back.' She told them. 'I'll get you out of here, I promise.'

She ignored the pleas from the others and approached the light. She shielded her eyes, took a deep breath, and ran into it.

* * *

'Oh, oh you don't want this mug, really.' The Doctor insisted, moving his head back and away from the looming scalpel. 'It's not that special. I mean… the nose? You could have a smaller nose. And… and it's a bit thin. It might stretch on that big… uh… that big jaw of yours.'

The man didn't show any signs that he was listening.

The Doctor winced. 'Well you could at least give me a sedative or something? I've never been that good with pain…'

'Whoa!'

Both the Doctor and the deformed man looked around to see Ashley barrelling out of the light, arms pin wheeling. She stumbled right into the man, knocking him onto the Doctor, and knocking the Doctor over on his side. She landed on top of the deformed man, her face only inches away from his. Her eyes widened as she focused on him.

'Oh Christ…' she mumbled. 'You should really rub some Savlon or something into that in case it gets infected.'

The deformed man growled and shoved her off him, sending her rolling across the floor and smashing into a trolley, causing the contents to shower over her. The Doctor lay parallel with her a little away. He grinned at the sight of her.

'I was wondering how long it would take you to figure out that you could leave that way.' He told her.

'Sorry,' Ashley groaned, pushing herself up. 'I was kind of too busy fearing for my life.' Before she had a chance to fully regain her footing, the man grabbed her from behind and picked her up as if she weighed nothing.

'You're not supposed to come out here!' he roared, tossing her aside again in anger. 'You'll go to _waste_!'

Ashley hit the wall hard and landed on her back. Dazed, she rubbed her head, which was now quite bloody. The Doctor struggled with his binds, but couldn't get out of them.

'Ashley!' she yelled. 'Are you okay?'

'Peachy…' she grumbled, trying to get to her feet again. This time she saw the man coming and managed to dodge him. He crashed into a tower of electrical equipment, causing a show of sparks to fly around him. Ashley scrambled across the floor to the Doctor.

'Go in my pocket,' he told her, watching the deformed man as he struggled to get back up. 'Get the screwdriver and put it in my hand. Quickly!'

Ashley reached for his front pocket.

'The back pocket! The back pocket!' he cried.

'Oh, sorry.' She blushed, and reached for the back pocket. She just managed to get it into his hand before she was grabbed again. She kicked and struggled, but the man was just too strong.

'I made a mistake,' he growled. 'Beautiful people don't harness so much violence. You don't belong in there. You don't deserve anything.'

Ashley kicked her foot back hard, catching him in the groin. The man didn't even flinch. She sighed and rolled her eyes. 'That would be bloody right…' she muttered, and then let out a squeal as she was pushed hard against the wall.

Behind them, the Doctor managed to get out of his bounds with the help of the screwdriver. However before he had a chance to reach Ashley, three figures sprinted out of the light.

'Grab him, Saskia!' Dina yelled, launching herself at the deformed man. 'Into the room!'

Dina, Saskia and Melanie jumped on the man's back, causing him to let go of Ashley. She dropped to the floor, groaning and barely conscious. The man roared in anger, trying to grab the females that hung from him. Saskia bit him hard on his shoulder and he screamed out. The Doctor moved to Ashley's side and propped her up.

'Are you okay?' he asked her.

'Fandabbydosy…' she slurred, eyes opening and closing lazily.

The Doctor stood and turned to see Saskia at a control panel. Dina and Melanie were shoving the man into the light. Dina was doing most of the shoving. Melanie was still hanging on his back, biting and clawing him.

'How do I turn it off?' Saskia cried. 'I don't know what to do!'

The Doctor ran to the controls. 'Get out of there!' he yelled to Dina and Melanie. 'Get out of there or you'll be trapped with him!'

Dina shoved the man once more with all her strength, and he fell on his front. She turned and ran back towards the rest of them, breathing heavily. Melanie got up and began to follow. The Doctor pointed at a large blue button. 'When Melanie's clear, hit that.'

Saskia nodded. The Doctor ran to the light and reached out for Melanie. 'Come on sweetheart,' he told her. 'You can do it.'

Just as her hand grabbed his, the deformed man grabbed her ankle. '_You're not taking this!_' he bellowed. '_You can't take this away from me!'_

The Doctor pulled on Melanie's arm as she shrieked in terror.

'He's going to get out!' Saskia cried in panic. 'I need to shut it!'

'Don't you dare!' the Doctor yelled. 'She's not clear!'

'I have to!' Saskia sobbed. 'He's going to get out!' She slammed her hand down on the button.

'No!' The Doctor yelled. The light went off. The resistance behind Melanie gave way and he fell backwards into darkness. There was panicked scuffling around him.

'Lights!' Dina cried. 'Get the lights on!'

'Wha…' Ashley groaned from somewhere. 'What happened?'

Lights came on, only this was an overhead light and not the light from the room. The Doctor looked around to see Melanie sat beside him, rubbing her head with a small hand. He grinned and pulled her in a one armed hug.

'That's my girl.' He beamed.

Around him, the women who had been trapped gathered. Dina helped Ashley stand and they looked towards where the light had been, their expressions solemn.

The deformed man was pounding on an invisible barrier, silently mouthing furious obscenities. He ran around the room, pounding on each wall. Veins bulged on his withered face as he screamed, but no sound reached them.

'Got what he deserved.' Saskia sniffed, wiping her nose.

The Doctor watched him for a moment longer. 'Come on.' He said, helping Melanie to her feet. 'Let's get out of here.'


	13. For Want of a Happy Ending

**Chapter Thirteen**

**For Want of a Happy Ending**

'Don't you think we should get them home?' Ashley asked, watching as Dina, Saskia and Melanie disappeared into the buzzing crowds with their arms around each other. Ashley herself was still cut and bruised, although her head had cleared since leaving the maze – which had been considerably easier than earlier.

'If they wanted our help they would have asked for it.' The Doctor replied. 'They have families to get back to. Lives to live.'

Ashley slipped her arm through the Doctor's and sighed. 'Melanie was in there for twenty years.' She reminded him. 'I doubt that her parents are just going to welcome her with open arms.'

The Doctor turned and looked at her. 'If I found my daughter alive and well after twenty years, I would be happy.'

Ashley looked at him and saw sadness in his eyes. She wanted him to elaborate on the statement, but he looked away and she knew the moment had passed. 'Do you think we've got time for a quick go on the dodgems?' he half smiled.

She laughed. 'I'll probably pass out if I have one more knock. No, I think we've been here long enough.'

The Doctor pouted. 'Aw. We didn't even get a souvenir. I saw a t-shirt that you might like.'

'You bought me a t-shirt?'

'Well… No, but I can take you to the shop if you want to buy it.'

'I don't have any money.'

The Doctor only shrugged at her apologetically. She rolled her eyes and sighed as they began weaving through the crowds towards the exit.

'Why did that man do that?' Ashley asked. 'Why would he do something like that?'

'Because he's insane.' The Doctor sighed. 'Believe it or not, some things can be explained with that simple reason. I've seen aliens round up a whole species and having a clear _motive_. People like him are the scariest because they don't even know why they're doing it. He thought he was helping you I suppose… in his own way.'

'So he was just your run of the mill psycho?' Ashley asked. 'Well there you go. You even get psychos on the other side of the universe.'

The Doctor nodded. 'Yup.' He replied, loudly popping the 'P'. 'You get psychos all through time and space. Wait until you meet the guy who invented sellotape.' He shuddered. 'Which you won't because there's no way I'm going to his house ever again. He likes to tape… things.'

Ashley cocked an eyebrow at him. 'Sounds like fun.' She paused thoughtfully. 'So… he's going to be trapped in there, for all eternity? Never aging? Never dying?'

The Doctor looked grim. 'It's his comeuppance.' He replied, darkly.

Ashley eyed him for a moment. 'I always thought you were forgiving, Doctor.' She took her arm from his and pushed her hands in her pockets. 'Sometimes I feel like I don't know you at all.'

He didn't look at her. 'It's probably for the best.' He replied.

Ashley watched him as they walked, noting the look of exhaustion on his face. They had had it hard the past few days. He had had a worse emotional time. They needed a rest.

'I want to go somewhere quiet.' She told him. 'Somewhere where there's no big lights, hardly any people. Somewhere where we can just sit and chill out. I'll even share my Malteasers with you and I _never_ share my Malteasers with anyone.'

The Doctor turned to her and grinned. 'Sounds like a plan. I know the perfect place.' He stepped in front of her and crouched. 'Get on my back.'

Ashley laughed. 'What? Shut up. You're built like a rake. You'll snap in half.'

'Hey,' he frowned. 'I have strong thighbones. From all that running.' He added hastily. 'Jump on or I'll leave you behind. You won't be able to keep up with that limp, gimpy.'

Ashley laughed and jumped on his back. He grunted, commented on her being heavier than she looked – to which she swiftly hit him on the back of his head – and he trotted through the rest of the park and out the exit to return to the Tardis. He ran the last few yards, making Ashley squeal out with laughter. Once inside, he set her down.

'You're mental!' she laughed, pushing him in the shoulder. 'I nearly get locked in an eternal tomb, you nearly get your face sliced off and you _still_ act like nothing bloody happened. Talk about repressing memories.'

The Doctor only smiled and moved to the control panel. 'You should go wash that blood off.' He told her. 'Bathroom is down the corridor, third left, fourth right and second door on your left.'

Ashley cocked an eyebrow, and then followed the directions he had told her. Stepping through the bathroom door, her eyes fell upon the mirror. She looked at it for a few moments, examining her beaten reflection, and then picked up a towel and hung it over the front.

**THE END**

* * *

**A/N: I'M SORRY the ending is so rushed and PANTS, but I accidentally deleted my notes for the last chapter and couldn't quite remember how it went. I'll rewrite it if it comes back for me, but I think it's gone to be honest. It wasn't anything special, just this but a bit longer. I tell you why that happened, it's because I had 13 chapters! I _told_ you 13 chapters was unlucky!!**

**Anywho, enough rambling about crap. I hope you enjoyed it anyway and thank everyone as usual for your absolutely spiffing reviews :D (spiffing is my new word btw - i need to get Ashley to say it at some point) I'd usually put another comparison to you all rocking but I can't think of any at this moment in time so you'll just have to settle with being frackin' awesome!!**

**And so we stumble blindly into EPISODE SIX which will be called 'Deadstone Greed'. It's the cowboy one lol! I need to do some research on all that panning gold thing... seriously I know NOTHING about the Old West so the next story will be riddled with awful history and terrible stereotypes so apologies in advance. **

**So yeah... that's my ramble over. THANKS FOR READING YOU AWESOME ANTHILLS!! XD I love you all -sniff-**


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